


Unspoken Mostly Felt

by CalaisButNotInFrance



Category: Carol (2015), The Price of Salt - Patricia Highsmith
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-16
Updated: 2016-02-16
Packaged: 2018-05-20 22:45:39
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,038
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6028252
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CalaisButNotInFrance/pseuds/CalaisButNotInFrance
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This takes place before Carol and Therese ever have sex. Like, right before. Rrrrrrrright before.</p>
<p>Also, there actually is some speaking here and there, but, like, you know.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Unspoken Mostly Felt

Therese was becoming less nervous around Carol, but still hadn’t made it to a manageable level. Carol was as nervous around Therese as ever, but had decades of practice managing nerves on her side. And caring for an externally shivering wreck like Therese always gave her something positive to focus on.

It was the fourth night they had been in a hotel together, and they had started developing a routine: gaze longingly at each other over dinner and light banter, gaze longingly walking through a park back to the hotel, gaze longingly back in the room with the radio on softly in the background. Carol always looked like she had something she wanted to say. Therese always looked like she wanted to have something to say.

That night in particular found them in the smallest town they had yet spent a night. They had opted for a simple dinner, sandwiches and beer at a small diner, and turned in fairly early. They had both changed into sleepwear by 7:30. Therese in thin cotton pajamas with a snowflake pattern, somewhat loose over her small frame. Carol wore a thick, plaid flannel robe with matching pants, over a luxurious silk slip. She may have still had her bra on, Therese couldn’t tell, though not for lack of trying. She was afraid to stare too long, despite her fascination with Carol’s chest. Carol wore the flannel robe loosely, almost open; which was to keep from overheating at some level, although Therese suspected (rightly) Carol intended temptation as well.

Therese still wasn’t entirely sure what Carol saw in her. She had returned her gloves ages ago. Obviously Carol wasn’t just saying thank you, even Therese had caught on to that during their first lunch together. Carol clearly liked her, but Therese couldn’t guess why. Carol was gorgeous, fashionable, wealthy, basically an angel. Carol could have anyone. Therese was just a damp mouse, scurrying around with a cheap camera. She would have asked, but she was too nervous Carol wouldn’t have an answer and would end up changing her mind. No, best not to question why a such an incredible woman was doting on her.

Therese sat on the chair, trying to stay comfortable despite the growing warmth engulfing her. Carol had retreated to the bathroom, but Therese had heard no sound for some time. It was making her nervous. She tried to focus on the sounds from the radio, but the occasional shifting shadow from the still open bathroom door distracted her.

Carol wasn’t sure why Therese seemed so interested in her. She had returned the gloves, sure, but then she accepted the invitation to lunch as well. And now she was sitting in the other room, after spending an entire evening with Carol. Clearly Therese liked her, but Carol couldn’t guess why. Therese was adorable to the point of exquisite. She was a gifted artist, she was fun and daring. Carol was a sharp set of cheekbones wrapped in an overpriced dress. She would have asked, but she was afraid of how Therese would answer. Instead of asking the big question, she asked smaller, more immediate questions.

“Therese?” she called.

“Yes?” Therese replied from the other room.

“May I kiss you?”

Therese paused before answering. It was a long moment for Therese, mustering her courage out of Carol’s sight. For Carol, it was a lifetime and a half. It had already taken her all day to work up the courage to ask in the first place. Eventually, before Carol wrung her hands around a towel too tightly, Therese replied.

“Yes.”

Carol exhaled a breath she hadn’t realized she had been holding. She fussed with her hair and robe once more before putting on the face she had been practicing in a mirror for weeks, and walked out to kiss a beautiful woman.

Therese was practically shaking after Carol’s question. Her face shifting between an excited smirk, and a wide-eyed look of dread. Carol actually wanted to kiss her. It wasn’t just flirting. It wasn’t just games, as fun as they had been to play. Her eyes danced around the room until Carol emerged from the other room.

The lights of the bathroom were the rays of the sun to Therese’s eyes, illuminating a vision of Carol gliding toward her. As soon as Therese’s eyes met Carol’s they were stuck. Carol’s were half closed, focused only on Therese. Her face was framed by her perfect hair, a curl of which was just touching the right corner of her mouth, which was relaxed and just parted. Her robe was completely undone, leaving her chest more bare than Therese had ever seen. Without the slip, which had mysteriously gone missing, Carol’s breasts touched briefly where they met. They sagged in the slightest, most beautiful way Therese could have imagined. 

Carol was halfway across the room when Therese noticed she was still clutching her empty bottle of beer. She clumsily slammed it onto the table next to her, unable to take her eyes away from Carol’s. Every step she took seemed to widen Therese’s eyes another small amount. Therese was sure her heartbeat would be audible to Carol, possibly audible even to their neighbors. Unsure what to do with her hands, she squeezed the cushion on either side of her legs.

When Carol was within arm’s length of Therese, she tilted her head. The hair that had touched her lips fell away. Therese managed to swallow once more. She knew she was unprepared for the kiss, for the feel of Carol’s lips gently caressing her own. So she was completely overwhelmed by what happened.

Carol paused for a moment, and then quickly wrapped both her hands around and under Therese’s jaw, pulling her up and leaning in. Therese drew in a quick, surprised breath as Carol’s lips pressed firmly against her own.

Immersed in Carol’s lips and scent, Therese was finally able to close her eyes again. Her attention was taken up entirely by the syncopation of Carol’s lips: the sudden opening, and gentle drawn out closing. The tension in her body slowly unwound under Carol’s attention. Her shoulders dropped, her hands relaxed. She eventually managed to pull her arms up, resting her hands lightly on Carol’s arms.

Carol moved her hands down to Therese’s neck, then the tops of her shoulders, and then the sides. She squeezed gently, telling Therese to stand without using her lips. Therese managed her way up, with a respectably low amount of fumbling.

Carol stopped kissing Therese, and slowly pulled away to look at her eyes. Therse was frozen in place until Carol spoke.

“Would you turn around for me?” Carol asked in a whisper.

Therese turned to face the bed. Carol reach her arms up under Therese’s, pressing her fingers against her collarbone. Therese could feel Carol’s breasts against her back, and her own chest heaved. Carol moved her hands to the buttons of her shirt.

“May I undress you?” she asked.

Therese tried to answer, but couldn’t find her voice. She nodded, hoping it would be discernible against the general swaying of her body. She got her answer when Carol began undoing her buttons, and kissing her neck. Time seemed to stand still for Therese, her mind was racing, yet Carol’s movements were so unhurried. It was like she was savoring Therese, wanting to experience and enjoy every bit of her.

When the buttons were all undone, Carol gently pulled the shirt off Therese’s shoulders and down her arms. She tossed the shirt on the chair, and then knelt down, pulling Therese’s pants and underwear down as she went. Therese could feel Carol’s hair brushing her butt and thighs.

“Onto the bed, if you would,” Carol said, always asking, never demanding.

Therese climbed onto the bed, stepping out of the clothes around her ankles. She laid face down, hands folded under her cheek. She glanced back, but was too nervous to really make eye contact with Carol.

Carol meant to climb onto the bed beside Therese, but had to stop when she saw her laid out on the bed.

“You are magnificent,” she said, almost too quiet to hear.

Therese squeezed her eyes shut, smiling unavoidably. Carol’s exalting gave her life. 

Carol brushed her nails along Therese’s back until she shivered. Satisfied by the response, Carol started brushing her whole palm against Therese. Feeling bolder, she shifted to sit on Therese, pressing both hands into her shoulders.

“Are you comfortable?” Carol asked.

“Mm,” Therese could only mumble.

Carol smiled, and fell into a rhythm massaging Therese’s back. Her shoulders lowered as the tension drained away, and as they did, so did Carol’s.

Therese melted. Carol was too much. She felt her body merging with the bedsheets, a sleepy puddle under her crush’s hands. She was afraid she might fall asleep. She was afraid of the dreams she might have if she did. Her dreams had been vivid enough simply sleeping in the same room as Carol. She was worried she was already too far gone to ask Carol to stop, not that she wanted her to anyway.

Before it was a problem, Carol swung her leg back around, and moved her hands lower down. Therese felt her movements slow. She would move to a certain point, squeeze gently, and then pause. It was like she was studying Therese, taking in her topology. Therese heard Carol sigh at one point, which made Therese feel better about how overwhelmed she was. The fact that she felt better struck her as silly, and she felt herself grinning. She almost had to hold back laughter when she felt Carol’s lips against her lower spine and her grin was replaced with a sharp intake of air.

Carol’s hands moved to Therese’s thighs. She started near her knees, but Therese could feel it up into her lower back. Her entire body rocked each time Carol squeezed. Without even realizing it, Therese spread her legs at Carol’s touch. Carol moved her hand to Therese’s cunt, but paused before she made contact and asked.

“May I-”

“Yes,” Therese said, almost shouting, before Carol could finish.

Carol pressed her palm against Therese, slowly, gently increasing pressure. Her palm and fingers firmly massaged Therese’s vulva, her middle finger just reached to Therese’s clit. Therese thought she could hear Carol moaning in her ear, until she realized it was her own voice, that she was moaning subconsciously. For the first time, it all felt good.

Carol started to put a finger into Therese, but pulled out before she was actually inside.

“Darling, can you roll over for me?” Carol asked.

“Uh-huh,” Therese said. Or thought she said. She intended to say, but couldn’t be sure she succeeded.

She started to push herself up onto her arms, but collapsed back to the bed, her legs too shaky. She took a moment to catch her breath, and grunted into the pillow, her head swimming.

Carol took the opportunity to remove her robe, and dropped it to the floor at the foot of the bed. She put one knee on the mattress next to Therese’s hip, and pulled Therese’s bent knee up to her chest. She leaned in gently, and moved her hand back to Therese’s cunt. She paused again before she touched Therese, but this time she was speechless, enraptured by her girlfriend’s still heaving chest. Carol shook her head once, and slowly slipped her middle finger inside Therese.

Carol held her palm against Therese’s clit, while she pulled her middle finger slowly in and out. Therese let out a small moan each time she exhaled. Carol smiled at the reaction. She left a long, distracted peck on Therese’s kneecap. 

“Would you like another?” Carol asked.

Therese tried to gather herself to say yes, but could only nodded vigorously. Carol smiled again, and added her ring finger. Her remaining fingers lightly squeezed Therese’s labia. As she pulled her fingers back, she pressed in with her palm, and when she pushed her fingers back in her palm released. She continued that rhythm, enjoying the rising movement in Therese, until she started moving the bed with her. Carol pressed in one more time, slowly, and deeply.

“May I use my mouth?” Carol asked.

Therese tried once more to say something, but couldn’t. She covered her face in her hands, and nodded again.

Carol knelt down on her discarded robe, and put her hands on Therese’s hips. She gazed at Therese’s face, hoping for eye contact, happy simply to observe her breathing. She started kissing her thighs, again starting at her knee. She worked her down, occasionally smiling up at Therese. When she made it down one leg, she brushed her face barely against Therese’s cunt. She nestled face against Therese’s thigh, low enough for her hair to tease Therese’s labia. Carol planted several deep, possessive kisses on Therese’s thigh, leaving one on the crease at her hip. She took one more moment to smile at Therese.

Therese managed to smile back. The sight of Carol, her smile, her eyes, her hands around her hips, the look of frenzied enjoyment on her face, it was all too much. The smile took over Therese’s face, she threw her head back, and started giggling hysterically. 

The giggling turned to small shrieks, and her brows arched, when she felt Carol’s tongue against her cunt. Her legs pulled up, but Carol held them back, held them out of her way. Carol ran her tongue up the length of her vulva several times, breathing harder each time, working to keep her pace slowed. She pulled Therese’s clit into her mouth, and began sucking, nibbling, and pressing with her tongue. Therese’s body convulsed. She propped herself up onto her elbows, and then reached one hand down to Carol’s hair. Her moans had become shouts. She thrust her hips into Carol, and Carol moaned back against her. Therese squeezed in with her thighs, and Carol held them back hard, digging her nails in. They both pulled against each other harder and harder, until Therese’s rocking became shaking.

“Ohhh, god, Carol,” Therese said, “I can’t.” She couldn’t finish the sentence. “I can’t,” she repeated.

Carol slowed, and lightened, releasing Therese from her hands and mouth. She blinked her eyes back open, licked her lips, and gazed up at Therese. Therese returned the smile, and then fell back against the bed, still reeling from the experience.

Carol stood, slipped off her remaining clothing, and climbed onto the bed over Therese. She held herself up on her arms, admiring Therese for a time. Therese was still shifting back and forth. She grinned, and dreamily draped her arms around Carol’s neck. Carol smirked, and leaned in. Therese tried to return Carol’s kisses, but she ran out of breath too fast. She had to stop, and Carol kissed her cheek and jawline.

“Don’t worry,” Carol said, “save your strength.”

Therese grinned and chuckled, from Carol’s words and from Carol’s lips against her neck.

Carol propped herself back up onto her hands, and looked at Therese intently.

“Would you-?” She asked, trailing off.

Therese’s head was still swimming, she couldn’t finish the sentence. “Hmm?”

Carol looked away for a moment, apparently at a loss for words.

“Would you,” she said, “return the favor?”

A beat, and then Therese understood and nodded eagerly.

“Oh,” she said, “yes. Yes, of course.” Part of her wanted to add, “I’ll try,” but was too distracted.

Carol pulled her knees up to Therese’s shoulders, and straightened up to let Therese slip her arms underneath. Therese wrapped her hands around Carol’s thighs, and pulled her gaze and attention down Carol’s body. She started to lean up when Carol spoke.

“Oh,” she said, “you still have your headband on.”

Therese pulled back in self-conscious horror, her eyes wider than they had ever been. She frantically tried to reach an arm over the top of Carol’s leg to pull it off when Carol stopped her.

“No! No, I like it,” she said, “it looks good.”

Carol looked into Therese’s softening eyes, both bodies relaxed.

“You look so good,” Carol said softly.

Therese sighed deeply, and felt her body lose all its tension. Her eyes fluttered. She settled in under Carol.

“Ready?” Carol asked.

Therese nodded once more, and Carol lowered herself until her labia just touched Therese’s lips.

Therese was engulfed. She kissed and licked and Carol, her head swimming in the taste and the scent. She could hear Carol low moans, and could feel as Carol began to rock back and forth. As Carol’s pace gradually quickened, Therese felt Carol was doing most of the work. She was grateful for it, as lost as she was in the moment. Carol’s rocking turned to grinding, her moans grew louder, and Therese struggled simply to hold on.

“Oh, god, Therese!”

Therese melted at the sound of her name, “ta-rez,” shouted from Carol’s divine lips. She felt Carol tug at her hair as her entire body entire tensed and then relaxed. Therese was frozen in time then. To her, they laid in that climactic position for hours, days even. Carol a gently moaning statue, and Therese destroyed but still intact. 

After an eternity, Carol sat up, and untangled herself from Therese. She pulled some stray hairs out of her face, and made her way back down the bed. Therese lifted her arms above her head, as Carol settled in against her shoulder, and laid an arm across Therese’s midsection. Therese put her arms around Carol. They enjoyed each other’s breathing for several moments.

Therese pulled her headband off, and tossed it toward the nightstand. In the commotion, Carol reached up and started tracing shapes on Therese’s chest. Therese placed her hand on Carol’s upper arm, and watched her work. She was suddenly reminded of something.

“Is that why you keep your nails so short?” Therese asked.

Carol chuckled. “I kept meaning to suggest it to you, but I couldn’t come up with a reason that wasn’t silly or just downright lewd.”

Therese grinned. She was in heaven.

“I’ll make it a point tomorrow to take care of the situation.”

They lay together, in a pile of each other, until a blissful sleep eventually overtook them.


End file.
